Miss Philippines Earth 2013 staged its Visayas regional screening last March 6 and Visayas did not disappoint! 16 beautiful “Bisaya” attended the screening at the event center of SM City Cebu. I mentioned to you my plans of attending the screening. Other than my intention to meet the possible candidates, I also wanted to meet Miss Philippines Earth beauties. I was lucky enough to meet Cebu’s pride Miss Earth 2008 Karla Henry and the Executive Director of the pageant Cathy Untalan. Both were gorgeous and were very down to earth. When I thought everything was doing well for my very first Miss Philippines Earth experience, I didn’t realize I was in for a BIG surprise. I was offered the “best seat” in the crowd when I was offered to be part of the judging panel…. I DIED!!! Kidding… Just kidding….

I arrived really early in SM. I wanted to be there when the aspirants will register so that I can see them up close and personal. Apparently, I was too early. But as an early bird, I caught these two and had a wonderful chat with them.

Karla was radiant and a true queen. She has this presence of someone with a title! She is much more beautiful up close. I was very happy to see Cathy as well. It was the first time that I saw her in person. She is a certified Pinay Glamazon – with her glowing Filipina skin, cheek bones and she is very tall which you know I super like! I also like Cathy’s stance – there is an air of sophistication and confidence every time she speaks!

I was also given a chance to meet the beautiful people of SM Food Group – a corporate partner of Carousel Productions in staging their pageants. SM & Carousel have been partner for years now and I love SM’s commitment towards Mother Earth. SM is not just our ordinary pageant sponsor but a partner for various activities as well. They even have their own Earth-friendly programs – like the eco bag pictured above for their shoppers – & their No Plastic Day program. To SM, thank you for making our Earth a much cleaner & more beautiful place to live in.

After saying YES to the judging panel invitation, I joined my fellow judges – Cathy Untalan and Allan Flores (hope I have his name right) – the head of SM Supermarket in Cebu. After taking my seat, the screening started with Karla Henry hosting the program.

Then, the 16 ladies paraded on stage one by one with their own eco bags. They introduced themselves and gave us an idea on their own environmental platforms. Here are some of the girls who screened:

One of my favorites though I didn’t like what she was wearing. Her voice during the talent portion was exceptional.

Candidate #5 also had a wonderful performance. Superb stage presence! If ever she will be considered as an official candidate, I suggest she change that hairstyle. It’s overwhelming her!

This girl traveled all the way from Baybay, Leyte!

Another beautiful candidate! She also had one of the best bodies in the group!

I love her because she’s one of the tallest…

Another beautiful candidate… She was glowing on stage! I love the Pinay features, the maturity and the confidence. If she will end up as an official candidate, my guess is that she will be doing really well. She has this tendency to be too pageant patty though.

Another possible strong contender from the group.

She had the best catwalk in the group. She was natural wearing sky-high heels. She also had a very strong stage presence!

Another strong contender… Her performance of an Adele song was superb letting her win the Best in Talent award.

After the introductions, it was time for the talent competition. It was not a requirement apparently so there were only 6 who performed. Here are some of the pictures:

After all performances, it was time for the Question and Answer portion! As expected questions asked by Cathy were related to the environment – from the Tubbataha Reef incident to the Cebu Tsunami scare to the government’s efforts to protect the environment. There were few who I though gave “interesting” and “controversial” answers but in general, the girls did pretty well. Everyone should be reminded that this is Miss Earth which puts weight to a candidate’s ability to express her ideas well.

The screening ended with the 16 ladies coming out to the stage for a final look. Results were not revealed because Miss Philippines Earth will contact the candidates separately. I, too, am very excited to know who among the 16 will qualify as an official candidate. Cathy mentioned that they will pick as many qualified candidates as possible.

The official activities of Miss Philippines Earth 2013 will start after Easter and I believe that that’s the time that they will release the list of official candidates. We are in for another exciting year since they are bringing back the “challenges” which means that the girls will be very busy with a lot of activities. Theme of this year’s pageant is water cooperation and the pageant will also focus on the upcoming elections and its impact to the environment (which for me is a very good issue to carry). The big and exciting finale is set on May 19, 2013. Venue is still to be revealed! I asked Cathy on what are the qualities that they are looking for in a candidate, she replied with – “someone that you can work with”. This is true especially that as a Miss Philippines Earth winner, you have several activities lined up for the whole year which means that you will be working with a lot of people. Cathy also added that they are looking for someone with a “heart” for what they are doing.

I enjoyed my Miss Philippines Earth experience. I wish all the 16 ladies the best of luck as we all wait for the list of official candidates. I chose not to reveal the names of those who screened since they are not yet considered as official candidates.

On a separate note, I really want to go and watch the finale LIVE to complete my Miss Philippines Earth 2013 experience and for me to share with you first-hand on the things that will happen. I still have 2 months to save! Hahahaha! I am crossing my fingers that this will push through!